WCVB – Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said the city has reached a deal that will preserve the iconic Citgo sign in Kenmore Square, but will veto designating it a landmark.

“We are pleased to share that we have reached a long-term resolution that will preserve the Citgo sign and allow for it to remain in place in Kenmore Square for years to come,” Walsh, Citgo, Related Beal and Boston University said in a joint statement.

On Nov. 14, the Boston Landmark Commission approved giving the sign official landmark status. The city had 45 days to veto the commission’s decision. The deal recognizes “the significance that this sign has on our landscape in Boston, while balancing the opportunity for our horizons to continue evolving in future years,” according to the statement.

The designation would have protected the 60 by 60-foot sign that has stood in Kenmore Square since 1965 from any future development that would move the sign or block its view. The building at 660 Beacon St. on which the sign is mounted is not designated as a landmark. Developers were concerned what the status could mean for development in the area.

Welp that didn’t take long. The Boston Landmark Commission gave the famous Citgo sign city landmark status, which I blogged about last month, but that was a short lived designation. The status would have prevented all types of construction around the sign thats resided in Kenmore Square since 1965. Now the signs not going anywhere, but it definitely isn’t untouchable anymore. It seems like big business got into Marty Walsh’s ear as this new agreement all but guarantees that new condos, dorms, and other buildings will be built below, above, around and probably in front of the sign.

Before you know it, the Citgo sign is just gonna be a decoration in the middle of some rich guy’s house as developers build around the thing without actually removing it.

I realize it’s just a sign for a gas station thats basically gotten free advertising for decades, but it’s part of the Boston city landscape now. As I said previously, it’s in every famous photo, painting, and bad tattoo honoring the city. It should be a city landmark, but Boston has reversed field and shut that down for now.